Summary: In Luke 15 Jesus tells three stories. What is our role, as individuals to find lost people? What is the churches role?

That’s NOT the kind of trick or treat you look forward to. That’s real life scary☺

WELCOME CAMPUSES as we talk about how Jesus radically changes lives! Everyone has a story…I’m going to share a few with you today!

The bible says that Jesus died on the cross for our sins so that whoever believes in Him, will be saved. The point at which someone accepts Christ is always a miracle to me. It never gets old. For someone to realize their life has gone from death to life right before your very eyes…is the greatest feeling you can have as a Christian!

Truth is, a lot of people don’t know who Jesus is. A lot of people just don’t think about it. A lot of people just don’t care. A lot of people think you just cease to exist when you die. A lot of people think you get to heaven by being a good person.

A LOT OF PEOPLE JUST DON’T KNOW WHO JESUS IS

What people outside the church know about Jesus…largely depends on YOU! The church has its role, but the initial contact with who Jesus is comes from how you interact with them, how you talk to them, how you forgive them, how you show then unconditional love.

Think of someone in your life that has no idea who Jesus is. Someone who just can’t bring themselves to believe that there’s a God that would save them.

CC Mission Statement: To help spiritually restless and unchurched people love Jesus, serve others and tell the world about Christ.

That is what drives us. What is CC’s secret? Music? Teaching? (not this week) Kids ministries? Video, lights? Lee’s sometimes good/sometimes bad choice of shirts? Is it our cool building?

NO! It’s that we filter EVERYTHING we do through our mission statement. Because it’s a commandment.

It’s sticking to a core value and not wavering. It’s about not listening to every single piece of criticism, not getting derailed from our mission statement. Not adding things outside of our core values that make us lose our focus.

A recent poll – 84% of people polled said the church is exists to take care of MY needs! 11% said the mission of the church is to introduce people to Jesus and help grow them up in Christ.

This is completely out of balance and will quickly produce an ineffective church body. It will produce ineffective Christians.

Show me a church that is not growing (not huge) and I’ll show you a church that has an unhealthy balance.

I’ve been doing this for 15 years. There is a cycle that needs to be happening. People need to be accepting Jesus…growing up in their relationship with Christ…and in turn, sharing Jesus Christ with people in their lives who don’t know Him.

Talking with Lee…over 4,000 saved…over 2,000 baptised.

Luke 15 opens up with the religious leaders of Jesus’ time having a problem with Him associating Himself with non-Christians…even sitting down to eat with them.

The Pharisees and religious leaders of that time felt they were better than the Gentiles…those who weren’t Jewish. They wanted the attention and the head seats at the dinner table and banquets. They found no JOY in seeing a sinner repent of their sins and turn to Jesus.

Jesus is looking for an attitude change here…in how we view those who don’t know Him as Lord and Savior.

Some of us wouldn’t care if one lost sheep went astray…we already have 99…what’s the big deal. The shepherd in this story stops at nothing to find that one sheep. Then rejoices when he finds it.

All of Heaven rejoices. Over ONE sheep?? Jesus takes it one step further and says Heaven rejoices more for the one that was found than it does for the 99 that are not lost!!

This just isn’t the way we think most of the time. Is it really wise to leave 99 unattended while you look for just one? What if you never find it, what if that lost sheep is already dead? What if you die trying to find it?

It just seems like bad economics to some of us.

Why would I waste a whole party just for one sheep?

I’m so busy. My time is limited. Isn’t it someone else’s job to find that sheep? Isn’t that what a pastor is paid to do? I don’t know what to say…I’m flawed…they might not believe me. They might even reject me and laugh at me.

Is the ONE lost person really that important against the backdrop of the 99 that know what’s going on?